Climate Justice is SO Much Bigger Than the Environment
If we wait for the full impacts of climate change to gather the political will to act, it will already be too late for many communities. Environmental justice asks us to look at who is most exposed to climate harm, why those impacts fall so unevenly, and how long-standing social and economic systems shape vulnerability. This lecture will explore the reality that climate change is not a future threat, but a present one, especially for frontline communities already facing environmental and health burdens.
We’ll examine what climate resilience really means in practice, beyond technical solutions or policy buzzwords, and why issues like housing, land use, and local decision-making are central to building a livable future. By grounding the conversation in real-world examples, this lecture invites us to better understand how environmental justice and climate resilience are deeply connected, and why addressing one without the other falls short.
Event Plan:
6pm-6:30pm Mingling and introductions
6:30pm-7pm Lecture
7pm-7:30pm Q&A and group discussions
7:30pm-8pm More chatting and making friends :)
Ticket Info:
A ticket includes light snacks at the event and proceeds go towards club operating costs.
Club Members Tickets: $12! Join at the link below!
Guests / Non-Members Tickets: $15
Ready to become a member? Secure your discounted ticket and become a member here!
The event has limited space. Register now to reserve your spot! If you can't make it, update your RSVP up to 72 hours before the event starts to get a refund and to open spots up for others!
We want to make our events accessible to everyone! If cost is a barrier, please reach out for financial assistance by emailing sam@climateactionclub.io.
About the Venue
We’ll be meeting at Trellis, an inclusive coworking and event space, in SOMA. Light snacks will be provided and drinks (beer and wine) will be available for purchase from the bar. The event is open to folks under 21.
Community Principles
Growth Mindset: We are committed to learning together, deepening our understanding of climate challenges, and taking action where we’re best positioned.
Relationships, Not Transactions: We prioritize genuine connections over networking for opportunities, recognizing that strong relationships drive lasting change.
Inclusivity & Diversity: A range of perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences enriches our community and leads to better engagement and solutions.
Mutual Respect: We foster a respectful space where all voices are heard. We may not always agree, but we’re here to learn and grow together.
About Our Speakers
Ayesha Abbasi is the Senior State Organizer at APEN Action. Ayesha (she/her) is a first-generation Pakistani American raised in the Bay Area. Her early childhood experiences in Pakistan led her to become involved in a number of non-profit organizations providing resources to communities in need both locally and globally. Ayesha went on to receive a degree in Political Science from UC Riverside and continued to combat inequity by leading cultural competency education workshops and building multi-cultural coalitions. Through her community organizing and outreach work, she was awarded the Sumi Harada API Leadership Award and went on to be a Ronald O. Loveridge Policy Fellow. Ayesha is excited for her role as the State Organizer where she can use her strengths in community outreach, education, and organizing in conjunction with her knowledge of statewide policy. In her free time, you can find her propagating houseplants, volunteering as a counselor for Exhale, or taking a hike.
Denise Wong is the Senior Statewide Membership Organizer at APEN Action. Denise (she/her) comes from a seventeen-year background in organizing Asian Americans. Prior to APEN, Denise served as the Staff Development Director at Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco and Tenant Organizer at Filipino Advocates for Justice, where her campaign successfully won rent control and just cause protections in Alameda after defeating landlord-backed Measure K (at the time the most expensive ballot measure in Alameda's city history). Denise graduated with a B.A. in High Honors from UC Berkeley in Asian American Studies. She speaks Japanese, Tagalog, Cantonese, and limited Korean and Spanish. Outside of movement work, Denise is a bodybuilding enthusiast and dedicated Monbebe.
Eddie Junsay is the Senior Policy and Campaign Manager at APEN Action. Eddie (he/him) was born and raised in the Bay Area in a big karaoke loving, party tray sharing, outdoors exploring Filipino immigrant family, which gave him an appreciation for interdependence and community. His formal organizing journey began in San Diego where he worked to build political power among low-income immigrant communities. Since then he has played many roles in climate, immigrant, economic and worker justice movements leading civic engagement programs, facilitating organizing academies, and strategizing to win clean energy, conservation, and workers’ rights campaigns. He has a passion for youth leadership development to build up the next generation of climate and environmental advocates and has done this work with Power Shift Network and the Sierra Club. Eddie is also a musician and queer pop producer. He directs The Queer Choir in Oakland and sings with Wildchoir, a bay area based vocal group of climate and social justice advocates, healers and artists. If he’s not singing or campaigning he’s probably somewhere in the forest, Pacific Ocean, or at home strategizing with his partner and cat about where to place the next unnecessary trinket.
About Climate Action Club
Climate Action Club is a Bay Area community for people who care about the climate crisis and want to take meaningful, collective action. We turn climate anxiety into connection, clarity, and civic power - no prior experience required!
For partnership inquiries, please reach out to climateactionclub.sf@gmail.com
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